Global Buyer

Category Buyer – (Heavy Industrial Manufacturing)

Location: Reading

, PA - Hybrid

Employment Type:

Full-Time

About the Opportunity

The

Global Buyer I – MRO Supplies and Services

is responsible for the strategic sourcing, category management, and procurement of Maintenance, Repair, and Operating (MRO) supplies and outside services across the enterprise. Reporting to the

Global Procurement Manager – MRO

, this role manages approximately

$30-40 million in annual global MRO spend

and partners closely with Maintenance, Operations, Reliability, Engineering, and EHS teams to ensure the cost-effective and reliable supply of materials and services that support plant uptime, asset reliability, and operational excellence.

The position drives enterprise value through category strategy development, supplier performance management, contract negotiations, risk mitigation, inventory optimization, and continuous improvement initiatives across a multi-site global manufacturing environment.

Primary Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end sourcing, procurement, and category management activities for approximately

$30-40 million in annual global MRO spend

, including spare parts, consumables, tools, PPE, repair services, calibration services, maintenance contractors, and indirect operational support services.

• Develop and execute global and regional MRO category strategies that optimize total cost of ownership, improve service levels, reduce supply risk, and ensure business continuity.
• Identify, evaluate, qualify, and manage suppliers while negotiating contracts, pricing agreements, service level expectations, and commercial terms that deliver measurable value to the organization.
• Drive enterprise-wide competitive sourcing events, RFQs, RFPs, and strategic negotiations to achieve annual cost savings, cost avoidance, and productivity improvement targets.
• Manage supplier performance through scorecards, business reviews, audits, and corrective action programs to ensure quality, delivery, responsiveness, safety, and compliance standards are achieved.
• Partner with Maintenance, Reliability, Engineering, and Operations teams to standardize specifications, reduce SKU complexity, consolidate suppliers, and implement preferred supplier programs across manufacturing locations.
• Collaborate with site stakeholders to optimize MRO inventory strategies, critical spare parts management, vendor-managed inventory (VMI), consignment programs, and working capital performance.
• Monitor market trends, commodity dynamics, supplier financial health, and geopolitical risks to proactively mitigate supply chain disruptions and ensure supply continuity.
• Support asset reliability, preventive maintenance, predictive maintenance, and plant uptime initiatives by ensuring timely access to critical materials and services.
• Work with Finance, Operations, and business leaders to develop annual budgets, spend forecasts, procurement plans, and cost control strategies.
• Lead contract lifecycle management activities including supplier selection, contract execution, renewals, compliance monitoring, and performance evaluation.
• Drive procurement process improvements, digital procurement initiatives, data analytics, and Req-to-PO efficiency enhancements to improve service levels and stakeholder satisfaction.
• Ensure compliance with company procurement policies, ethical sourcing standards, sustainability objectives, and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Support internal and external audits, supplier qualification processes, risk assessments, and special projects as assigned.

Additional Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Engineering, Operations, or related field preferred.
• Minimum 3-5 years of procurement, strategic sourcing, category management, or supply chain experience, preferably within manufacturing, industrial, chemical, packaging, or process industries.
• Experience managing MRO categories and influencing spend decisions in a multi-site or global environment.
• Demonstrated success managing supplier relationships, leading sourcing events, and negotiating contracts that deliver measurable financial results.
• Experience managing annual category spend portfolios of

$30 million or more

preferred.

• Strong analytical, financial, and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret spend data, market intelligence, and supplier performance metrics.
• Knowledge of inventory management, maintenance operations, spare parts management, and reliability-centered maintenance principles preferred.
• Proficiency with ERP systems, eProcurement platforms, spend analytics, and Microsoft Office applications.
• Strong communication, stakeholder management, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced global manufacturing environment.